Opinion
No. CV-03-1584-PHX-SMM.
December 7, 2005
ORDER
Plaintiff currently has matters pending before this Court under CV 03-1584 and CV 03-0374. Under FRCP 42(a), a Court may consolidate actions pending before it "involving a common question of law or fact." The Ninth Circuit has interpreted FRCP 42(a) to provide a district court broad discretion to consolidate cases pending in the same district. Investors Research Co., v. U.S. District Court, 877 F.2d 777 (9th Cir. 1989).
In both actions, Plaintiff alleges that a virtually identical set of Defendants exhibited deliberate indifference to his serious medical needs. In both actions, Plaintiff further contends that Defendants' indifference aggravated the condition of his health and that such indifference constitutes both a violation of his Constitutional rights (under different Constitutional Amendments (the Eighth and Fourteenth Amendments) in the respective cases) and medical negligence. Plaintiff's divergent Constitutional claims notwithstanding, the Court finds that both actions have a significant number of common questions of law and fact.
Accordingly,
IT IS HEREBY ORDERED that CV 03-1584 is consolidated with CV 03-0374. IT IS FURTHER ORDERED that the parties shall proceed in accordance with the Third Amended Complaint [Doc. No. 129] as permitted by this Court's Order dated September 29, 2005 [Doc. No. 125] and all future filings shall be made under the caption CV-03-0374.
IT IS FURTHER ORDERED withdrawing the reference of CV 03-1584 to the Magistrate Judge for the purpose of consolidating this case with CV 03-0374. All other matters shall remain with the Magistrate Judge for disposition as appropriate.